Highway signal



Nov. 28, 1939. J RT ETAII 2,181,613

HIGHWAY SIGNAL Filed m. 30, 1937 x TOR tdfi/ ATTOR Patented Nov. 28,1939 UNITED STATES 2,181.01: mcnwar srcmr.

Andrew H. Stewart, Shields, and Peter Kuoera, Allison Park, Pa.,assignors to The Phoenix Glass Company, Monaco, Pa" a corporation o WestVirginia Application August 30, 1937, Serial No. 161,644

40laima.

This invention relates to signals and more particularly to highwaysignals of the reflector type which are rendered luminous by reflectinglight from an external source such, for example, as the headlights ofa-motor car, and an object .of this invention is to provide an improvedsignal embodyin'g the reflector principle. This application is acontinuation in part of our application Serial Number 62,444 filedFebruary 5, 1936.

10, Heretofore, signals of this type have usually taken the form oflight-reflecting buttons generally arranged in roadside signs to spellout words or form diagrams or the like for directing traflic. 'Effortsto use such devices on the surfaces of roadways to indicate dividinglines between the difierent lanes of trafflc have not producedcompletely satisfactory results.

A further object of this invention is to proyide a trafflc signal of thereflector type constructed and arranged to be effectively employed onthe surfaces of roadways for indicating the dividing lines betweentraflic lanes, although it will be hereafter apparent that the inventionis also adapted to a wide variety of other uses.

These and other objects which will be apparent to those skilled in thisparticular art are accomplished by the present invention, one embodimentof which is shown for the purposes of illustration in the accompanyingdrawing in which Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a signal constructed inaccordance with one embodiment of this invention.

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view onthe line 2-2 of Fig. 1 showingthe manner of applying 85 it to a roadway.

Fig. 3is a side elevation of the embodiment shown in Fig. 1, but withthe guard member removed, and

Fig. 4 is a top plan view thereof.

The present invention provides a signal device which is particularlyadapted, although not necessarily limited, to use on roadways forindicating dividing lines between difl'erent traihc lanes. In such use aplurality of devices are arranged in spaced relationship along thedividing lines. Each device is constructed and arranged to reflect lightfrom the headlights of motor cars approaching from either direction andon either side of the dividing line so that the incident rays arereflected back. in the directionof an approaching car. Each deviceitself appears to be a brightly glowing light to the driver of anapproaching car and the trailic lane formed by the line of lightscompels the driver's attention. The arrangement is such that as theangle of incidence of rays changes with the approach of a car the angleat which the light is reflected is correspondingly changed with theresult that the signal appears to the driver to glow brightly during theperiod of his approach from 5 a'considerable distance away until he issubstantially on top of it. The'brightness of the signal results fromthe features of construction peculiar to the present invention.

The present invention comprises a unitary 10 transparent body,preferably of glass, having a light-refracting face of such formation asto refract incident rays of light frpm an external source such, forexample, as automobile headlights, to a mirror surface located withinthe de- 15 vice and in turn so formed as to reflect the light receivedfrom said face back thereto in such a way that such face will refract ordirect the reflected ray back in the direction 'of the external source.The construction and arrangement are 20 such thatthis function isfulfilled through relatively wide angles of incident rays. The device ispreferably so formed as to be located in a bore tion comprises aunitary, transparent body portion 5, preferably of molded glass, adaptedto be located in a bore formed in the surface 6 of a roadway as shown inFig. 2. The top of the device may, if desired, be protected by a guardplate I having side arms 8 resting on the road surface and connected bya bridge member 9 extending across the center portion of the top of theglass 40 body 5 and formed with opposed cut away portions between theroad engaging arms as shown in Fig. 1. For ease in shipping or handling,the guard and body portion may be connected together in any way desired.As illustrated, buttons 9on each side of the body portion 5 extendthrough perforations formed in the lower ends of lugs formed on theguardand extending downwardly on each side of the device, see Figs. 2and 3. The arrangement is such, however, that in use the guard does notrest on the body portion. but is spaced slightly therefrom so as notto.contact directly therewith. The perforations in the downwardlyextending lugs also serve to 55 anchor the guard in the roadway when thebore is fllled with grouting material.

On each side of a central axial plane passing through the body portion 5is an outer, transparent, light-refracting face i adapted to be locatedin the path of light from an external source. Each face III is so curvedas to refract incident rays to an inner mirror surface I I which, in theillustrated embodiment, is located on the opposite side of the axialplane passing through the body portion 5. Each mirror is so formed as toreflect such refracted rays back to the cooperating faces l0 where theemergent rays are again refracted and directed back in the direction ofthe external source of light.

The mirror surface can be formed in any of the various ways known tothose skilled in the art. When the body portion is made of glass, weprefer to form the mirror surface by spraying metal, such as aluminum,on the glass body while it is still hot from the molding operation, inthe manner described, for example, in Stewart Patent No. 2,053,923,September 8, 1936. The metal coating thus formed adheres to and forms anintegral part of the body portion. It provides an efficient mirrorsurface while the outer face of the coating forms a metal oxide whichserves to protect the glass body and the mirror surface. We prefer tospray the entire body portion 5 below the transparent light-receivingfaces l0 as well as the top It between the faces iii, as the' coatingforms a shock insulator when the device is placed in a roadway.

For the purpose of properly reflecting rays of light which are incidenton the face ill from a relatively high angle, as when headlights areclose to the device, the mirror surface Ii has a lower portion curved inthe vertical plane on'a shorter radius than the upper portion thereof.This portion is illustrated as a mirror surface i2 which is offset fromthe main part of the mirror surface ii for ease in manufacture, althoughit will be apparent that it may be formed as a continuation of the uppermirror face. Obviously, the mirror surface can be formed without anyoflset portions or with additional oflset portions, if desired. In thedrawing, each face i0 is curved in the horizontal on a radius ofapproximately inch, and in the vertical on a radius of approximately 1inch. Hence the faces i0 areformed about different centers in at leastone plane. This provides a most compact, eflicient construction. Theupper portion of the mirror surface II is shown as curved in thevertical on a radius of approximately 16 inches, while the lower portionI2 is curved in the vertical on approximately a 2 inch radius. In thehorizontal, the mirror surface is curved on approximately a 2% inchradius.

The illustrated embodiment includes a base l3 which is merely providedfor ease in molding but is not necessary to the successful operation ofthe device.-

As shown, the base has'an upwardly facing surface M which, together withthe stepped construction of mirror surface, provide shoulders engaged bythe cement or the like used to flll in the bore in the roadway to lockthe signal in place.

In operation, when employed to indicate dividing lines between trafficlanes or the like, any desired number of devices are located in spacedbores formed along the dividing line in a roadway. Each device will beplaced so that the light-receiving faces l0 face in opposite directionsalong the roadway. Incident rays of light from headlights approachingfrom either direction enter the signal through the light-refracting face7 ill on the side facing the lights and are refracted downwardly to theopposite mirror surface i: or I! depending upon the angle of incidence.The mirror surface reflects the refracted ray back to the face II! wherethe emerging ray is again refracted and directed back in the directionof the approaching vehicle so as to be clearly visible to the driver.The face ill gives a brilliantlylighted effect. As the vehicleapproaches and the angle of incidence changes, the angle at which theemergent ray is directed changes accordingly, due to the curvature andarrangement of the face ill and mirror Ii and i2. Of course, each faceIn and mirror Ii functions independently of the other so that the deviceoperates equally with light from either side or from one side only.

It will be apparent that the invention can be variously modified andadapted within the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

l. A road marker comprising in combination a guard member and a lightreflecting body member having flattened sides, the guard memberextending across the top of the body member and having opposed cut awayportions between outwardly extending road surface engaging arms and apair of lugs extending downwardly from said arms and adapted to engagethe flattened sides of the body member, the said body member beingprovided with two oppositely disposed light refracting faces positionedin the cut away .por-

tions of the guard member above the horizontal plane of the underside ofthe road surface engaging arms and arranged at an angle to saidhorizontal plane, and cooperating concave light reflecting surfacesformed in said body member below said horizontal plane, each said lightrefracting face being curved in two planes on different radii to refractand transmit light incident thereon at an acute angle to said horizontalplane downwardly and across the interior of said body member against anopposite and cooperating light reflecting surface which is also curvedin two planes on diflerent radii to reflect the transmitted light towardand through the opposed cooperating light refracting face, and a coatingof light reflecting material covering the reflecting surfaces and theflattened sides of the body member.

2. A road marker comprising in combination a guard member and a lightreflecting body member, the guard member extending across the top of thebody member and having opposed cut away portions between outwardlyextending road surface engaging arms and a pair of lugs extendingdownwardly from said arms and adapted to embrace the sides of the bodymember, the said body member being provided with two oppositely disposedconvex light refracting faces'positioned in the cut away portions of theguard member above the horizontal plane of the underside of the roadsurface engaging arms, and cooperating concave light reflecting surfacesformed in said body member below said horizontal plane, each said lightrefracting face being formed to refract a beam of light incident thereonat an acute angle to said horizontal plane and transmit it downwardlyand across the interior of said body member against an opposite andcooperating light reflecting surface which is formed to reflect thetransmitted light toward and through the opposed cooperating lightrefracting face, and a coating of light reflecting material covering thereflecting surfaces and the sides of said body member.

3. A road marker comprising in combination a' guard member and a lightreflecting body memher, the guard member extending across the top of thebody member and having a cut away portion between outwardly extendingroad surface engaging arms and a pair of' lugs extending downwardlyfromsaid arms to embrace the sides of the body member, the said bodymember being provided with a. convex light refracting'tace positionedin. the cut .away portion of the guard member above the horizontal planeof the underside of the road surface engaging arms, and a cooperatingconcave light reflecting surface formed in said body member below saidhorizontal plane, said light retracting face being curved in two planesto retract and transmit light incident thereon at an acute angle to saidhorizontal plane downwardly and across the interior of saidbody memberagainst said light reflecting surface which is also curved in two planesto reflect the transmitted light toward and through the opposedcooperating light retracting face.

4. A light reflecting element for a road maker tormed of molded glasswith oppositeiydisposed light retracting faces separated by a centraldepression on the top tace adapted to receive the bridge portion of anassociated road surface engaging guard member and having flattened sidesadapted to be located between depending lugs on said guard member, saidlight retracting taces being so positioned on the element as to be abovethe horizontal plane of the road engaging surfaces of said guard memberwhen the element is attached thereto, and inner oppositely disposedlight reflecting taces so positioned on the element as to be below saidhorizontal plane, each said light retracting face being tormed totransmit and retract light incident thereon at an acute angle to saidhorizontal plane downwardly and across the interior of said elementagainst an opposite and cooperating light reflecting surtace which istormed to reflect the transmitted light toward andthrough the opimedcooperating light 90 retracting face, and a coating of light reflectingmaterial covering said reflecting surfaces.

ANDREW H. STEWART. PETER KUCERA.

